illustrator-ai-mcp

Let Claude design in Adobe Illustrator — 100% local, private by default.

An MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that gives AI assistants hands and eyes inside Adobe Illustrator: it writes and runs ExtendScript, sees the canvas via window screenshots, reads document structure, exports artwork, and (optionally) remembers techniques that worked — all without a single byte leaving your machine from this server.

📖 New here? Start with the step-by-step USER_GUIDE.md — install, Claude Desktop/Code setup, permissions, and troubleshooting for both platforms.

Platform	Status
🍎 macOS	✅ Fully supported & tested (AppleScript bridge)
🪟 Windows	⚠️ Experimental (COM bridge via pywin32 — testers welcome)

Privacy

No network code. This package contains zero HTTP clients, telemetry, or analytics. It talks only to Illustrator (via AppleScript/ExtendScript) and your local filesystem.
History is opt-in and OFF by default. Nothing is logged until you (or the AI, with your permission) call set_memory(True).
One-command wipe. Everything the server ever stores lives in ~/.illustrator-mcp. Delete that folder and it's gone. There is also a clear_history capability in the memory layer.
Honest caveat: screenshots of your Illustrator window and script results are sent to the AI model as part of your conversation — that is inherent to how the AI sees the canvas and iterates on the design. If a document is confidential, don't ask an AI to look at it. The server itself, however, never transmits anything on its own.

Features vs. the original

Inspired by spencerhhubert/illustrator-mcp-server, rebuilt with the feedback loop an AI actually needs:

Capability	spencerhhubert/illustrator-mcp-server	illustrator-ai-mcp
Run ExtendScript in Illustrator	Yes	Yes
Script output capture (`return` values)	No — fire and forget	Yes — scripts return data to the AI
Error messages with line numbers	No	Yes — AI can fix and retry
Window screenshots	Fixed screen region	Dynamic window detection, any display
Document state as JSON (artboards/layers/selection)	No	Yes
Export artwork (png/svg/pdf/jpg)	No	Yes
Undo	No	Yes
Local run history	No	Yes — opt-in, off by default
Reusable snippet library	No	Yes — searchable across sessions

Requirements

macOS (AppleScript bridge — fully supported) or Windows (COM bridge — experimental)
Adobe Illustrator (any recent CC version), running
Python 3.11+
uv recommended (plain pip works too)

Install

With uv (recommended)

git clone https://github.com/Gokul2/illustrator-mcp-Gokul-Dhatkshina-Moorthy-.git illustrator-ai-mcp
cd illustrator-ai-mcp
uv sync

With plain pip

git clone https://github.com/Gokul2/illustrator-mcp-Gokul-Dhatkshina-Moorthy-.git illustrator-ai-mcp
cd illustrator-ai-mcp
python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
pip install -e .

Hook it up

Claude Desktop

Add to ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "illustrator": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": [
        "--directory",
        "/absolute/path/to/illustrator-ai-mcp",
        "run",
        "illustrator-ai-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop afterwards.

Claude Code

claude mcp add illustrator -- uv --directory /absolute/path/to/illustrator-ai-mcp run illustrator-ai-mcp

First run: macOS permissions

The first time the server touches Illustrator, macOS will ask for two permissions. Grant both to the app hosting the server (Claude Desktop, your terminal, etc.):

Automation — lets the server send ExtendScript to Illustrator.System Settings → Privacy & Security → Automation → enable Adobe Illustrator under your client app.
Screen Recording — lets view_canvas screenshot the Illustrator window.System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen Recording → enable your client app, then restart it.

If a screenshot comes back black or the tool reports a permission error, Screen Recording is the usual culprit.

Tool reference

Tool	What it does
`run_script(code)`	Execute ExtendScript on the current document. `return <value>` sends data back; errors include line numbers for fix-and-retry.
`view_canvas()`	JPEG screenshot of the Illustrator window — the AI's eyes.
`get_document_state()`	Structured JSON of artboards, layers, and selection — cheaper than a screenshot for layout logic.
`export_artwork(path, format)`	Export the document to png / svg / pdf / jpg at a path you choose.
`undo_last()`	Undo the most recent action (Cmd+Z).
`list_history(limit)`	Recent script runs (only when memory is enabled).
`get_run(run_id)`	Full code + screenshot path of one past run.
`save_snippet(name, description, code, tags)`	Save a technique that worked to the local library.
`search_snippets(query, limit)`	Search the library before writing complex scripts from scratch.
`set_memory(enabled)`	Opt in/out of local history logging (default: off).
`memory_stats()`	What's stored, where, and a privacy statement.

Example prompts

"Design a minimalist mountain logo — dark blue palette, geometric, on a square artboard."
"Recreate this layout as 3 variations on separate artboards."
"Draw a sunburst badge with 24 rays, then export it as an SVG to my Desktop."
"Look at the canvas and tell me what's misaligned, then fix it."
"That gradient trick worked great — save it as a snippet for next time."

Your data

Everything the server stores lives in one folder:

~/.illustrator-mcp/

That's the opt-in run history (SQLite), optional screenshots, and your snippet library. To wipe it:

ask the AI to clear the history (uses the memory layer's clear_history), or
nuke it yourself: rm -rf ~/.illustrator-mcp

Nothing else is written anywhere, and nothing is ever transmitted by this server.

illustrator-ai-mcp